My honey's birthday...

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It was a really low key day, due to the fact that he ended up working for 10 1/2 hours and had planned on taking the day off. Otherwise, it was a beautiful days, filled with flowers...

Spring growth on our trees, new sprouts in our container gardens, and dandelions in our fields....

And a sexy man at the BBQ,  showing me exactly how to make the meat juicy and tender.  BBQ Pork Ribs, marinated in BBQ sauce w/wine & BBQ Mushrooms marinated in olive oil & balsamic vinegar,  He might be a year older, but definitely getting better....

PS: He really does cook meat a lot better than I do, but even if he didn't I would never tell him and risk having to cook my own meal!

Looking back at food

 Looking back over the last week of meals I served my family, and certain foods jumped out at me making my mouth water.  The first I thought of was the Portabella mushrooms that I stuffed several nights, in particular the Albacore Tuna one that I didn't think I would like.  It really turned out well, and it was made the same way as the crab ones I talked about earlier.

 Garlic bread, this stands out because of the fact that it looks so funny, but tastes so good.  When I slashed it, instead of it bursting out and rising higher, it sort of pushed out and just made some funny shaped bread.  Really though, good bread has nothing to do with the shape and everything to do with the crust, the crumb, and the taste. 

Just love the look of butter melted into the bread.  This is Flax Seed 100% Whole Wheat bread.  It is really good for mopping up the extra sauce from......

 Chicken and spaghetti noodles, covered with homemade spaghetti sauce, with fresh crimini mushrooms and onions.  Topped with parmesan cheese and ready for dinner the other day.

Here is another wonderful chicken dinner.  I marinated the chicken with olive oil, white wine, herb oil, salt,  and pepper.  I fried it in a nonstick skillet, so that I didn't have to use much oil.  Then I added onions and fresh crimini mushrooms.  I haven't cooked with wine for many years, mostly because I don't drink, so very rarely have any around.  The other day though I saw a dish made with wine and thought, that sounds so very good!

I partnered it up with pasta with a parmesan white sauce topped with shredded parmesan.  It tasted just as good as it sounded!  I am so glad that cooking wine makes it non-alcoholic.  I just love the taste of this... 

Maybe this week it will be boxed mac & cheese and hamburgers! 

Portabella mushrooms stuffed with crab

A favorite late night snack...

Portabella mushrooms stuffed with a mixture of crab, bread crumbs,celery, sharp cheese or parmesan cheese, onion, mayo, basil, parsley, and oregano. I saute the onions and celery in some olive oil, and a little balsamic vinegar (you can use white wine), then put them into a food processor with a slice of bread and the cheese and mix well. Then I put this into a bowl with the crab and mayo and stir till everything is mixed well, but still has crab chunks in it.

I scrape the gills out of the mushroom cap, to make room for all that wonderful filling and stuff them. Then I bake them at 450* for 1/2 an hour. Don't forget!

Nummy....